Preparation Collection

Champagne Hoard
Lining up bottles of champagne in rows in preparation for a wealthy Argentine society event at the Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Date: 1930s

First English Civil War: Siege of Lathom House, 1644
Royalist stronghold Lathom House in Lancashire defies Parlimentarian pressure and raises the royal standard. The ensuing siege lasted three months, but was eventually lifted

LCC-LFB enclosed pump at Lambeth fire station
Pictured at Brigade Headquarters, Lambeth SE1, an example of an 1930 enclosed London pump with carried breathing apparatus

LCC-LFB Woolwich fire station, SE London
The crew of Woolwich fire station, Sunbury Street, on parade on the station forecourt. WW2 is pending and an Auxiliary Fire Service fire engine is standing in the station next to the LFB pump escape

Christmas Eve - about 1460 by Pauline Baynes
Christmas Eve, as celebrated in 1460 with children bringing in holly and the Yule Log to be lit on Christmas Day, and other joining in a last minute carol practice

Gun transport exercise, Wentworth Woodhouse, Yorkshire
An emergency gun transport exercise taking place at Wentworth Woodhouse, Lord Fitzwilliams residence at Rotherham, Yorkshire

French lady getting ready to go out in her boudoir - she check the powder on her nose - " Yes, that is just perfect!" Date: circa 1910s

Swans in a punt at Henley
A punt load of swans, and two cygnets, about to be transported higher up the River Thames for their safety, in preparation for the annual Henley Regatta in early July

Contract I Hogarth 1745
Marriage a la Mode 1. The Contract The Earl of Squanderfield and a rich Alderman of the City of London arrange a marriage between son and daughter

Morning in Menagerie
Morning in the menagerie - the animals are washed and fed in preparation for the days activities

HMS Queen Emma before D-Day, WW2. circa 1944

Boat Maintenance
Workers doing painting and maintenance work on boats at the R. Redknap & Sons boathouse, Richmond, Surrey, England, in preparation for the summer boating season. Date: early 1930s

Heath Robinson Cartoon
Cartoon, All for Lawn. A few timely suggestions for levelling our lawns in preparation for the coming tennis season. Groundsman flattening grass

Growth of the submarine by G. H. Davis
The growth of the submarine from 1901 to 1912. In chronological order, they are: 1901-2 Holland Class, 1903-5 A Class, 1904-6 B Class, 1906-9 C Class, 1911 D Class and 1912 E Class

Naval manoeuvres on East Coast by G. H. Davis
The naval manoeuvres of 1913: the varying fortunes of the East Coast raiding parties. How the Humber Ports were raided last week by the Red fleet

LCC-LFB Interior of Brigade Control Unit
The inside of the control unit and the preparation of the fire ground map, showing the layout of the affected building. It is used for planning the disposition of crews and lines of attack on the fire

Town Topics rehearsal in New York
Theatrical, Ned Wayburns Rehearsal for Town Topics. The ladies chorus dressing room of an unidentified theatre with women pictured in various stages of dressing and grooming. Date: c. 1915

Policeman and policewoman with gas masks
A policeman and a policewoman wearing civilian gas masks outside Harrow Road Police Station (X Division) before the outbreak of World War Two. The respirator is contained in the canvas bag

W Heath Robinson - Peeling Potatoes by Gramophone

Thessaloniki - Preparing the Aperitif Mastic and Mezza. In medieval times, mastic was highly valued by sultans harems as a breath freshener and a tooth whitener

Bakers Shop / Loaves
A scene in a bakery, with the preparation and baking of standard size loaves of white bread

Rolling the Pitch
Rolling the pitch in preparation for the cricket season in the West Indies

(Goat) Meat Stall - New Market, Calcutta (Kolkata), West Bengal state, India. The two gentleman on the right are clearly Muslim and therefore practising Halal Butchery. Date: circa 1910s

Peeling Potatoes - Fish & Chip Shop, Morecambe, Lancashire
A young girl peeling a large tub Potatoes in the rear yard of a Fish & Chip Shop at Morecambe, Lancashire. Date: circa 1901

Washing Potatoes - Fish & Chip Shop, Morecambe, Lancashire
The proprietor/owner washes Potatoes in a rotary hand-cranked washer prior to peeling at the rear yard of a Fish & Chip Shop at Morecambe, Lancashire. Date: circa 1901

Young girl preparing chips - Fish & Chip Shop, Morecambe
A young girl (likely the daughter of the shop owner) prepares chips at a Fish & Chip Shop in Morecambe Lancashire. Note the wonderful chipper machine on the counter

WWII - the man who eats grass, Mr J. R. B. Branson
Mr J. R. B. Branson, who advocated a diet of grass to counter food shortages during the Second World War. The Bystander magazine ran a double page spread on him

Young boy and hot fat fryers - Fish & Chip Shop, Morecambe
Young boy (the son of the owner) standing next to the hot fat fryers - Fish & Chip Shop, Morecambe, Lancashire. Date: circa 1901

Dipping plaice in batter - Fish & Chip Shop, Morecambe
The owner/proprietor dipping plaice (or another type of flat fish) into a ceramic pot of batter in a Fish & Chip Shop, Morecambe, Lancashire, before placing into the hot fat fryer behind

Syrian Women preparation preparing flat bread
Damascus, Syria - Syrian Women preparation flat bread, cooked over a domed hot stone. Date: circa 1920s

Sierra Leone, West Africa - Husking of Rice pestle & mortar
Sierra Leone, West Africa - The husking of rice using a pestle and mortar - common traditional domestic scene of food preparation. Date: circa 1910s

Social gathering in Amsterdam, Netherlands
Social gathering of friends and family to prepare for a wedding in Amsterdam, Netherlands, in which the guests put together leaves, flowers and coins to throw over the couple at the wedding

The Preparation Of Dry Grapes
This painting shows the scene, aptly described in the title, of some women preparing dry grapes. A smiling man is sitting behind, leaning against an arch, with another man

Preparations for race day for both sides. Oxford and Cambridge trained at Henley and Goring before they went head to head. Date: 1925

Italy, Pompeii. Villa of the Mysteries. Ancient Roman suburban Villa. Frescoes depicting a bride initiating into a Bacchian Mysteries in preparation for marriage, 1st century AD. Date: 2014

Sydney Girls High School
A photograph of Sydney Girls High School. THE OLD ORDER CHANGETH Yesterday??the school and playground of our parents. To day?

Advert for Cyclax, a cosmetic brand established in 1896 by Frances Hemming. Date: 1932

Schleicher ASW20 EBX (msn20058, BGA No.2565), in the glider parking - preparation area at a gliding competition in the UK. Date: circa 1982

Wood for cremations, Benares (Varanasi), India
Wood piled up in preparation for cremations at Benares (Varanasi), Uttar Pradesh, India. Date: circa 1890s

A group of women standing over a couple of barrels cleaning fish. Date: 1908

Fiat G-91Y MM6956 / 8-62 (msn 2063), awaiting preparation for gate-guard duties at Amendola Air Base, near Foggia. Date: circa 2000

Queen Elizabeth I addressing her troops at Tilbury, Essex, in preparation for the expected invasion by the Spanish Armada, August 1588. Date: 1588

Marshal Soult on a white horse outside the town of Alba de Tormes, near Salamanca, Spain, an orderly on foot behind him, in preparation for an attack on Anglo-Portuguese forces stationed there

Tattooing a Maori Chief in New Zealand, during a period of conflict that included the First Taranaki War and the Invasion of the Waikato (1860-1863). Date: early 1860s

Comic postcard, Scene at secretarial college Date: 20th century

Comic postcard, Little boy sharpening large pencil Date: 20th century

Comic postcard, Man washing in a bowl Date: 20th century

Advert, Wesson Oil for cooking and salads. 1926

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